We continued our journey from Svalbard to Lofoten with a brief stop in Tromso. This is our second trip to Lofoten ( review) and during the first time we took a flight from Oslo to Bodo (BOD) and then a car ferry to Moskenes (link). From Moskenes it is a short ride to Reine, which is the most photographed scenic town in Lofoten and all of Norway.
Our Flight Path
This time around, I wanted to skip the long ferry ride (3.5hr) and chose to fly from Tromso-Bodo-Leknes (LKN). Widerøe typically runs the small propeller planes for this route and I was able to book 10 months ahead of time for my planned trip to Lofoten. I recommend using the official webpage of Wideroe (link) instead of Google Flights since several flights don’t populate when you search for the smaller airport connections in Norway. Wideroe is a budget airline (merged with Norwegian Air) and lets you pay for priority boarding & carry-on luggage in a package deal.
Wideroe Flights
Wideroe WF 2033 flight from Tromso to Bodo had a flight time of less than one hour and we were able to take our carry on luggage and place horizontally in the overhead bins. However, the second Wideroe connection (15 minutes flying time) from Bodo to Leknes had a much smaller propeller plane and we were forced to check the luggage at the flight entrance with easy pick up when we landed. Interestingly, there is no option for seat selection and it is “free seating” for the second shorter connecting flight. I recommend sitting in the very front so you can get out faster to get to the car rental in Leknes airport before the start of a big line from other passengers.
Best base to explore Lofoten islands
We stayed in Reine during our 1st trip, but it is very touristy and gets crowded. I recommend staying around 10 miles away from Reine (e.g., Ramberg) with a rental car (link).
Drive from Leknes Airport to our 1st accommodation
The Leknes airport is very small and the car rental counter is located right next to the luggage belt. People waiting for the checked luggage can start the process of picking up the car rental even before the arrival of the bags to the luggage belt.
Our Booking.com Accommodation (link) is located in the Lyngværet region of Nordland which is about 30 minutes of driving from the Leknes airport. It costs around $400USD per night and you get a lot more space and amazing views compared to Svalbard accommodations for the same price.
Waterfront Cabin
This cabin is named Nydelig hytte i unike Lofoten i nærheten av Henningsvær! (translated as “Beautiful cabin in unique Lofoten near Henningsvær!”). The cabin is part of modern housing construction complex (Lyngvær Lodges Lofoten) which is surrounded by breathtakingly beautiful Lofoten mountain ranges and waterfront views (see images below).
Outside Views
Inside Views
The living room/kitchen is unbelievably beautiful with very large windows and remote operated sunscreens to counter the heat from the evening sun. One can see northern lights from the massive wall-to-wall living room windows from the comfort of the sofa (there is no light pollution).
The two bedrooms in the guest house have bunk beds attached to sleep a family of 7 or 8 (there is a sofa-bed in the living room). Both bedrooms have black-out shades to sleep through the midnight sun during summer. There is a single bathroom with a shower, toilet and washer/dryer combo. We also appreciated the powerful air-conditioner/heat pump (with remote control) in the living room, which is rare to see in Norway. Wi-Fi connection has around 100mbps speed and the living room has a large Samsung TV with a media center.
Jacuzzi on the front deck
This guest house also has a Jacuzzi with a privacy wall around it with a clear sky view; we enjoyed it every day during our stay and I can’t imagine a better place to enjoy northern lights on a cold winter night.
Our 2nd Lofoten accommodation
Our second accommodation is in Gravdal region, named Lofoten rorbuutleie – Lilleeidet (link).
This is a group of apartments with water/mountain views on both sides. The prices in peak summer months are usually $300 per night and they are 50% cheaper in other months. Apartments are very spacious with kitchen + living room downstairs and three bedrooms with a large bathroom (with a great view) located upstairs. There is a large wooden deck (connected between all apartments) with wonderful water views.
There are two easy hikes (Haugheia) (Kyllingdalen) within a short drive from the apartment and I recommend doing them before attempting the difficult hikes of Lofoten.
On the night of September 2nd, we were lucky to witness northern lights from the deck of the apartments.
Cooking & Dining During Our Stay
We rarely enjoy dining at restaurants in Lofoten since we don’t enjoy the way they make the sea food and it is rare to find a good steak or chicken. We tried Anita’s Seafood when we drove to Reine, but did not enjoy their popular fish burgers. After that bad experience, we decided to save money and cook in our cabins.
We went to the local grocery stores (COOP, KIWI etc.,) and purchased Ramen noodles, eggs, milk and cereal along with our favorite frozen pizza in Europe (Dr. Oetker Pizza Rustica Pepperoni); for under $6, this pizza comes out of the oven with a great flavor and is easy to digest with least bloating (despite my IBS).
Lofoten Bakeri
This is one of the best coffee shops in Leknes town. We enjoyed the cappuccino and Chai Tea Latte there along with delicious ham sandwiches and pastries.
Lofoten Hikes
Nordland Lofoten has over 700 hikes listed in All-trails (link) and we did the top 5 listed there. It was interesting to see hundreds of Sherpa steps (Nepal Sherpa’s were hired to create stone steps for several hikes in Norway) when hiking Reinebringen and Djevelporten.
Our Wideroe flight from Leknes to Oslo via Bodo
Finally, our trip to Norway is coming to a conclusion and we were sad to leave Lofoten after spending the last 7-days enjoying a great sunny/cloudy weather which was perfect for hiking. We took Wideroe flight from Leknes to Bodo and connected to Oslo via Norwegian air. No one checked the weight of our carry-on luggage and the journey was uneventful.
Conclusion
I was excited to return to Lofoten region for a second time and I enjoyed both scenic guest houses during our 7-night stay. Lofoten reminds me of my recent trip to Bariloche, Argentina (link), but looks more beautiful in my opinion with more majestic mountains and large fjords.